A governor's staffer asked about approaches to states can use to prepare the higher education sector for economic recessions. Our response includes three policy tools that states have to cope with economic recessions and their impact on higher education systems; it also covers some anticipated institutional responses to economic downturns that may be taken into account when crafting state policy. To provide timely assistance to our constituents, State Information Requests are typically completed in 24 hours. They reflect an issue scan versus a comprehensive analysis.